Dreams
by pocketcucco
Summary: Eleanor's dreams are so cruel. Velvet/Eleanor, major end of game spoilers.


Aaaaand here's another prompt fill for Tales of Femslash Week! This prompt was Dreams (and because I'm totally uninspired, that's the title too LOL), so I wrote some Velvet/Eleanor (a little onesided). This has huge end of game spoilers.

* * *

 ** _Dreams_**

Eleanor's dreams were so cruel.

So many years had passed since Velvet left, but every once in a while, her mind would trick her. It would wrap her in sweet dreams of Velvet's touch and voice, make her think that everything was okay again.

And then the dawn came and reminded her that Velvet was gone, that she was never coming back, that she was being lied to. Again.

The worst part was that she never knew when it was going to happen. They came randomly: sometimes twice in one week, other times nothing for six entire months. She couldn't predict them. Couldn't prepare herself.

In her most recent dream, Eleanor was sitting on the floor of Velvet's home in Aball, mending her leggings. Velvet was on the bed nearby, and she was wearing a different outfit than Eleanor knew her in: a red tunic that looked homemade, black pants, and scuffed boots. Her hair was pulled back in a braid.

"Thank you for letting me finally fix your clothes," Eleanor said as she closed up one of the many holes in the leggings. How did Velvet wear these every day? They looked so uncomfortable.

"I thought I'd finally take you up on the offer," Velvet replied. Her gaze was soft and curious. "You're very good at this."

"Thank you. But it looks like you have a new pair of pants... Why do you want me to mend these? They're completely torn up."

"I wanted to take you up on your offer. You really seemed to want to help."

"Of course I do. I care about you."

She looked up, slowly, gauging Velvet's reaction.

To her relief, she was smiling.

"Thank you. I appreciate your hard work."

Eleanor looked down, a blush spreading across her cheeks. She was setting about her work again, and-

Eleanor blinked, and suddenly she was in a dark room.

Her awareness came in stages. It was nighttime. She was at an inn. Velvet wasn't sitting across from her and she didn't have the torn leggings in her hands.

She was alone.

Eleanor put her face in her hands. This dream, like many of the others, felt too good to be real.

Her chest ached, but she felt angry instead of sad. She wished again, not for the first time, that she told Velvet that she cared for her – loved her, really, if she was honest with herself – while she was still with them.

Eleanor lit the gas lamp beside her bed and checked the time. It was three in the morning – too early to get up and begin her work, but she didn't think she could go back to sleep again. She pushed herself up and got dressed.

The air outside was warm and balmy. Taliesin was much quieter by night than it is during the day. Eleanor sat at one of the benches with a view of the sea and took a long, slow breath. The fresh air would clear her head. She was probably having these Velvet dreams again because she was so close to Aball...

"What are you planning on doing in Aball?"

Eleanor jumped. Her heart started to pound. She turned, slowly-

Velvet was sitting beside her. This time she was wearing the outfit Eleanor remembered her best in, with its torn edges and ripped cape. Her hair was long and loose, shining in the light of the moon.

"This isn't real, is it?" Eleanor asked – it was the first time she'd actually been _aware_ that she was in a dream, and that scared her.

"It's real enough," Velvet said, crossing her legs at the ankles. "Were you going to my old home in Aball?"

"I don't know... I guess." Eleanor shrugged. "I wanted to...I don't know, be close to you somehow. You don't have a gravestone I can visit or anything."

"That's true. But I'm not exactly dead either."

Eleanor nodded, locking eyes with the daemon. She was afraid to look away – afraid that if she so much as blinked, the illusion would shatter.

This wasn't real – it absolutely couldn't be – but _gods_ , how she wished it was. Velvet was so close, she could reach out and touch her hair, feel how soft it was. She'd only been able to imagine it up until now...

Velvet's expression was strange when she spoke. "You've been having a hard time, haven't you."

"What do you mean?"

"Your nightmares. You think about me a lot."

Eleanor's face went red. "Haven't all of us? The others, I mean. They have to think about you a lot too."

"They do, but I can _sense_ you. Your thoughts about me are strong."

"What does that mean?"

"I can sense you from Endgand. We're always dreaming, me and Laphi, but sometimes I can see what you see when you close your eyes."

"You can... Oh."

Eleanor's heart was still racing. She wanted to get up and run. Her hands clenched on her lap, so tightly that the knuckles turn white.

Velvet put her palm over both of them.

"I'm not...good at this. At comforting," she said, her voice quiet. "But I saw your dreams and I felt bad."

"I'm sorry."

"For the way you feel?"

Eleanor was quiet for a moment. And then she shook her head.

"I'm not sorry for being in love with you. But I'm sorry I never told you."

"I know." Velvet took her hand away. "I wanted to give you a chance to tell me. So you can sleep better at night. So you can move on."

"I don't _want_ to move on. I want to see you again. I want to talk to you, and go on a journey with you, and taste your cooking again, even if it was all for Laphicet. I want you back."

Eleanor was crying softly by the time she finished. It was so unfair! Velvet suffered so much – why did she have to go and save the world, too?

"You could have stayed with us. We could have helped you."

But Velvet was shaking her head.

"No. I did what I did because I wanted to. Because it was right," she said. "Do you know what Laphi and me dream about? He's not sick anymore. He's finally seeing the world, and I get to go with him. Sometimes you're there with us."

"Oh? I wish I could have met your little brother."

"He thinks you're very sweet," Velvet said, the smallest of smiles pulling at her lips.

They sat in silence for a while longer, listening to the sound of the waves crashing against the cliffs. Velvet waited for Eleanor's sobs to subside before she spoke again.

"I want you to move on. I want you to live a full life, Eleanor. You have the potential to live a full life. You drove me crazy, and sometimes I thought you were too soft for your own good, but that kindness is your strength. You deserve good things."

"I've tried, but I can't."

"You can. Please, Eleanor. I'm limited in what I can do – I can't always be here to talk you down."

"I wish you could," Eleanor said, laughing sadly. "I've missed you so much. Even if I did drive you crazy."

Velvet snorted.

"If I...told you that I loved you while you were still here with us, would things have been any different?"

The daemon was thoughtful for a moment. Her silence made Eleanor nervous.

"I don't know," she said. "We can't go back and change the past. We have to focus on the future. For me, that's keeping Innominat safe and asleep. For you, Eleanor... That's up to you now."

Eleanor unclenched her fists. She thought that Velvet's answer would upset her, but it didn't. The ache in her chest was gone – well, mostly – and she was able to confidently meet Velvet's gaze.

"I'll do my best," she said. "It doesn't change the fact that I loved you. That I still love you."

Velvet nodded, but she was smiling. "I know. You're a stubborn one."

"You have to go back to Laphicet soon, don't you? Before you leave, there's just one thing... If I may ask."

"Go ahead."

"May I...touch your hair?"

Velvet's expression was strange – but she laughed and waved a hand.

"Fine. Go for it."

Eleanor reached out and ran her fingers through the locks closest to her.

They were softer than she imagined.

"Miss?"

A different voice. Eleanor turned around, startled-

The sun was out.

She was surrounded by townsfolk.

Velvet wasn't there anymore.

An older man was standing beside her now, his hand on her shoulder, shaking her awake.

"I'm so sorry, miss, but I wanted to make sure you were okay," he said when she opened her eyes. "Are you hurt? How do you feel?"

Eleanor took a long, slow breath, gathering herself.

Yes, Velvet was gone.

No, she wasn't coming back.

It still hurt, but... Maybe Eleanor could start to move past the pain. She would never forget it, of course, but she could start small. Baby steps.

"Yes," she said, after only the slightest hesitation. "Yes. I think I'm okay now."


End file.
